Smokehouse for fish and other foodstuff



. A. L. LYON SMOKEHOUSE FOR FISH AND OTHER FOODSTUFF Filed Nov. 27, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 @Einar l Duw I zzoeys' 06f. 19,'1948. A, Y0N 2,452,016

SMOKEHOUSE FOR FISH AND OTHER FOODSTUFF I m/entor @CL lg, 1948. 5A, 1 LYON 2,452,016

SMOKEHOUSE FOR FISH AND OTHER FOODSTUFF Filed NOV. 27, 1943 n v 3 Sheets sheet 3 I meutor Patented Oct. 19, 1948 lU`- Il\l-l"l"l:`.l) STATES PAT-ENT OFFICE Alfred L. Lyon, Eastport, Maine; Zelma A. Lyon, Roscoe C. Emery, and Charles C. Norton, -all of Eastport, 'Maine, yexecutors of said Alfred L. rLyon, -assig-nors to Zelma Lyon, Roscoe C. Emery, and 'Charles C. Norton, :all of Eastport,

Maine, co'trnstees Application .November 27, 1943, SeriallNo. 511,976

6 Claims.

'The present invention relates to an apparatus for curing by smoking iish and other food and is particularly lconcernec'l with obtaining a clean, sanitary product free from ashes and embers from the burning wood. This is accomplished by preventing the articles from coming in direct contact with the rising combustion resulting'from the 'fire nearest the same, thereby obtaining a smoked article `of the highest quality.

In order to obta-inthis result a specially constructed smoke house `has 'been devised as illustrated in -t-he 'accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 lrepresents la vertical section of 'the smoke house with the Vfront wall removed, showing an upper and a'lower floor thereof.

Figure 2 is a vertical section along the line 2--2 of 'Figure 43 of the Aoven with the fireplace, represented by a'metalcylinder in elevation, and

Figure '3 is a horizontal section along the line 3-3 o'fFigure 2.

In the iigures similar reference numerals indicate the same parts.

Reference numeral Iii represents the smoke house divided into a lower compartment II on the ground floor and an upper compartment I2 on fthe first floor.

@n the ground floor is to be round a brickoven I3 reaching nearly up to the ceiling lil kforming the '"oor of the upper compartment. A .smoke stack `I5 is provided for the oven I3, extending upwardly through the upper floor and the roof to carry the excessive smoke from the oven 'i3 into the air. Positioned in the smoke stack I5 is .a Adamper IB Awith an operating lhandle Il extending into the upper vchamber |12 above the iioor thereof.

fWithin .the .brick oven i3, standing on the cement or concrete floor I8, is placed a lplate cylinder I9 constituting the `fireplace closed on all rsdes, having a solid top .and solid plate Walls with the exception Vof vents 2.0, consisting of narrow slits, four being shown, placed a short -distance below lthe top.

A #fuel door 2| rfor the repla'ce within the cylinder is `provided on the outside of the brick oven. The door opening connects with the lirep'lace cylinder by means of a drum 22 anddirectly below the same s'shown a draft regulating tube 23 With-'a damper cmanipulated from the outside ofthe brick oven, see 'Figure 1.

At '25 is shown a ue pipe or hood-for conveying the hot smoke from the oven lI3 to the upper compartment I2. The smoke outlet from the hood 'is provided with a flap .or idamper 2,6 ior regulating the flow of smoke, :or entirely stopping 2 it from 'entering into the upper compartment I2..` Within said upper compartment is formed the actual smoke room 21'! by 4providing partitions 28 reachi-ng 'down from the ceiling to within a .short distance of the door M to `permit the smoke to pass from the 1outer part of the compartment intothe smoke room 2l beneath its 'bottom edges.

In the upper compartment I2, beneath the bottom kof the partitions 23, are provided steam pipes or 00115129 yaround the Walls vof the compartment l2, which are intended to still Vfurther increase the heat of the surrounding smoke passing from the hood `12 5 into the actual smoke room "21.

To insure the uniform heating and spreading of lthe smoke to all parts of the smoke room '2l electricor other 'fans 3l) are provided around the walls of the room and on the outer wall oi .the compartment l2 another ian 3l is indicated `for the purpose of exhausting slowly all smoke 'from the smoke room 2l when required, and including the entire compartment 12.

Although only one smoke room 2l and one upper smoke compartment l2 have been shown, it will be evident that one oven may be able to furnish hot smoke for several smoke rooms built around the chimney on the upper floor.

As a general rule the upper compartment t2 has a volume 'I-'il yor more times greater than the brick oven I3. The height of the upper compartment need `notloe more than six `or seven feet between floor and ceiling and yabout thirty 'feet long.

The articles to A'be smoked are placed in the smoke room, either on shelves or stringed up in the case oi herring or other fish on wires yor slender Wooden or metal sticks or on Wire akes in racks and suspended across the smoke room so that the `hot smoke can circulate around them and 'between the several rows of the articles.

The method -of operation is the following:

'The articles to fbe cured or smoked, such `as herring or 'other fish, meat, sausage, ham, `cheese etc., are deposited in a suitable Imanner in the smoke room as already described. lfV

A fire 'burning wood or other smoke `producing, fuel to produce dense smoke `is thereupon lit in the 'replace within the steel cylinder lil. As the iire flares up :a 'considerable amount of ashes, embers, sparks and c'inders will mingle with the rising smoke, and vwhich, under ordinary circumstances, would come in direct contact with the sh, etc., in the smoke room. Aside rom 'being aprotection from nre, 'thefre vchambm or cylinder Ill Vnow `=prever1`ts the undesirable ingredients from leaving the cylinder, which is closed on all sides, whereupon they will strike the solid top and adhere thereto or to the walls of the cylinder or fall back to mingle with the combustibles. In this manner a much cleaner, more appetizing and more wholesome smoked article will be the result, because now the surface thereof will be free from such contamination. If cinders and ashes, etc., were permitted to remain lin the smoke, they would collect and adhere to the moist skin or surface of the` article making it not only unappetizing but also unsanitary as food.

By means of the present method and apparatus, all such contaminations are removed from the smoke produced within the iirebox or cylinder i9 so that clean and reiined smoke will now seep slowly through the vents 20, of the cylinder, the draft damper 24 therein being adjusted to regulate the burning and rate at which the thick smoke emanates from the vents to collect in the surrounding space in the brick oven I3.

The damper I6, which was opened at first and has remained open in the chimney |'5 to give the re a good start,`is now closed when the smoke hasI become of the desired density, and the damper 26, which up until now has remained closed, is au-tomatically opened to permit the smoke from the oven I3 to rise through the flue in hood 25 to spread in all directions to iill the upper compartment l2 and the actual smoke room 21 within the same and where the iish or other ar-ticles for smoking are already deposited. The thick but clean smoke in said upper compartment further heated by the steam pipes 2-9I in order that the smoke may reach all parts within the smoke room 21, and particularly the iish, etc., when the fans are started.

Finally when the smoking is concluded, the chimney draft is again opened and the fan 3| started to suck out all the smoke from the smoke room and other chambers.

I-t is to be understood that the invention as here disclosed is not limited to the details here described and shown but that the same may be varied widely without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined` by the subjoined claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A smoke house for curing food stuffs of any description and more particularly herring and other fish, comprising an oven having heat retaining brick walls, a closed-in iireplace consisting of a metal cylinder closed on all sides within the oven and so positioned that free space is provided all around the same in the oven, the metal Walls of the fireplace having narrow vents adjacent the top thereof for permitting smoke to escape into said free space and compelling contaminating particles in the smoke to separate therefrom and collect above the vents, means for regulating the draft in the fireplace, a smoke room above said oven, an outer chamber around the smoke room in which said smoke room is suspended, said smoke room having an open bottom, a smokestack communicating with said oven and extending through said chamber, means for directing the smoke into the atmosphere and means in said stack for directing the smokein said stack into said outer chamber, the smoke passing from the outer chamber into the smoke room through said open bottom.

2. A smoke house for curing food stuiis of any description and more particularly herring and other sh, comprising an oven having heat retaining brick Walls, a closed-in replace consisting of a metal cylinder closed on all sides within the oven and so positioned that free space is provided all around the same in the oven the metal walls of the fireplace having narrow vents below the top thereof for permitting smoke to escape into said free space and compelling contaminating particles in the smoke to separate therefrom and collect above the vents, means for regulating the draft in the fireplace, a smoke room above said oven, an outer chamber around the smoke room in which said smoke room is suspended, said smoke room having an open bottom, a smoke stack communicating with said oven and extending through said chamber, means in said stack directing the smoke to the atmosphere, means in said stack for directing the smoke into said outer chamber, the smoke passing from the outer chamber into the smoke room through said open bottom and additional means for forcing the smoke onto the foodstuff.

3. A smoke house for curing foodstuffs of any description and more particularly herring and other iish, comprising a brick oven with heat retaining Walls, a closed-in fireplace consisting of a metal cylinder closed on al1 sides within the oven and so positioned that free space is provided all around the same in the oven, the walls of the fireplace having vents adjacent the top thereof for permitting smoke to escape into said free space and compelling contaminating particles in the smoke to separate therefrom and collect above the vents, means for regulating the draft in the fireplace, a smoke room above said oven, an outer chamber having heat retaining walls around the smoke room, said smoke room having an open bottom and suspended in said chamber, a smokestack communicating with said oven and extending through said chamber, means for selectively directing the smoke to the atmosphere or into said outer chamber, means for circulating the smoke and maintaining its heat within said smoke room, the smoke passing between the outer chamber and the smoke room through said open bottom.

4. A smoke-house comprising an oven, a closedin iireplace Within said oven and spaced from the walls and top of said oven, outlet means adjacent the top of said iireplace for conducting smoke between said walls of said oven and fireplace, means for regulating the draft in said fireplace, a chamber above said oven, a smoke room having the bottom open suspended in said chamber, a smoke-stack extending from said oven through said chamber, selectively operable means in said AStack for directing smoke from said oven to said chamber and said smoke room or through said stack.

5. A smoke-house comprising an oven, a closedin fireplace within said oven and spaced from the Walls and top of said oven, outlet means adjacent the top of said fireplace for conducting smoke between said walls of said oven and fireplace, means for regulating the draft in said iireplace, a chamber above said oven, a smoke room having the bottom open suspended in said chamber, a smoke-stack extending from said oven through said chamber, selectively operable means in said stack for directing smoke from said oven to said chamber and said smoke room or through said stack, said last-mentioned means including a port in said smoke-stack, damper means covering said port and a valve in said stack.

6. A smoke-house comprising an oven, a closedin fireplace within said oven and spaced from the walls and top of said oven, outlet means adjacent the top of said replace for conducting smoke between said Walls of said oven and replace, means for regulating the draft in said fireplace, a chamber above said oven, a smoke room having the bottom open suspended in said chamber, a smoke-stack extending from said oven through said chamber, selectively operable means in said stack for directing smoke from said oven to said chamber and said smoke room or through said stack, said last-mentioned means including a port in said smoke-stack, damper means covering said port and a valve in said stack, and heating means in said chamber for conditioning the smoke therein.

ALFRED L. LYON.

' Number 6 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

